The present invention relates to an air guiding system for a vehicle particularly for a passenger car, which is arranged in a rear area of the vehicle and comprises at least one central main air guiding element which can be displaced from a moved-in inoperative position into a moved-out operative position, lateral auxiliary air guiding elements being displaceable together with the or each central main air guiding element.
DE 30 19 150 A1, discloses a vehicle air guiding system that is arranged in an upper rear area of the vehicle and has an air guiding element that can be displaced from an inoperative position, in which it is integrated in the shaping of the rear area flush with the surface, into a moved-out operative position. The air guiding element is constructed as an aerofoil which, by way of an operating device, can be displaced or changed from the inoperative position into the operative position and vice-versa.
DE 43 05 090 A1 also discloses a vehicle air guiding system that is arranged in a rear area of the vehicle and has an air guiding element that can be displaced from an inoperative position into a moved-out operative position The air guiding element is formed by a rear spoiler arranged in a recessed receiving device of the vehicle body and displaceable by way of an operating device from the inoperative position to the operative position and vice-versa.
The air guiding systems known from DE 30 19 150 A1 and DE 43 05 090 A1 allows the rear axle output coefficient (cah-value) of the motor vehicle to be increased while the drag coefficient (cw-value) remains the same or is improved. Each of these known air guiding elements have the same transverse dimension in the inoperative position and in the operative position.
Yet unpublished DE 10 2005 030 203 discloses a vehicle air guiding system that has a central main air guiding element as well as two lateral auxiliary air guiding elements that allow the transverse dimension of the air guiding system to be enlarged in the operative position and particularly the rear axle output coefficient to be further increased. DE 10 2005 03 203 discloses that the adjusting movement of the lateral auxiliary air guiding elements with respect to the central main air guiding element takes place when the main air guiding element was displaced from the inoperative position into the operative position. The adjustment of the auxiliary air guiding elements with respect to the main air guiding element therefore takes place after the, and uncoupled from, displacement of the main air guiding element.
An object of the present invention is to provide a novel vehicle air guiding system by allowing the lateral auxiliary air guiding elements to be rotated with respect to the or each central main air guiding element about one pivot respectively fixed to the main air guiding element, in order to change the lateral auxiliary air guiding elements from an also moved-in inoperative position to an also moved-out operative position
According to an advantageous further development of the invention, the air guiding device couples the adjustment of the lateral auxiliary air guiding elements to the displacement of the, or each, central main air guiding element during its or their change from the inoperative position into the operative position and vice-versa. Thereby, the lateral auxiliary air guiding elements can be changed isochronously or simultaneously with the displacement of the or each central main air guiding element with respect to the or each central air guiding element from the inoperative position into the operative opposition and from the operative position into the inoperative position respectively. In this case, the lateral auxiliary air guiding elements are rotated with respect to the or each central main air guiding element about one pivot respectively fixed to the main air guiding element. Within a very short time and in a simple manner, the transverse dimension of the air guiding system according to the invention can thereby be adapted.
Preferably, an operating device is assigned to each lateral auxiliary air guiding element for the purpose of its rotation with respect to the central main air guiding element. A coupling device is applied to the operating device to couple the rotation of the or each lateral auxiliary air guiding element with respect to the central main air guiding element to the displacement of the central main air guiding element.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.